Lordy

English Alternative forms en lordy, en Lawdy Etymology From en Lord y<id:colloquial>. Nineteenth century, originally U.S. Interjection Expressing mild emotion, such as exasperation or frustration. en Lordy! Where's he off to now? en July 11, 1889 Herbert Tidd Bradley Fo' He am de Lord of de blue and de gray America: A Journal for Americans 2 453 Aunt Betty graciously permitted this. She always did; but if the forgetful old man wandered for a moment away from his theme she brought him back with a surreptitious: “Lordy! yo' ole head done filled wid me yit." en-US John Cassidy (journalist) John Cassidy James Comey Mastering the Machine The New Yorker 2011-07-18 https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/07/25/mastering-the-machine 0028-792X “I said, ‘Lordy, we have to put tops on bottoms. Let’s get something done,’ ” Comey recalled. https://web.archive.org/web/20260927190406/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/07/25/mastering-the-machine 27 September 2026 en-US Scott Heller Stephen Fry Knows He’s Become a Middle-Aged Cliché The New York Times 2025-06-19 https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/19/books/review/stephen-fry-odyssey.html 0362-4331 w:Stephen Fry In 2021, the Times described you as an “avuncular public intellectual.” How do you feel about that label?[Stephen Fry:] Oh my lordy lord. Avuncular gives me great pleasure. https://web.archive.org/web/20250824113609/https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/19/books/review/stephen-fry-odyssey.html 24 August 2025 Expressing strong emotion, such as amazement. en 1863 March A horrible scrape The Southern Literary Messenger 37 172 Lordy! Call your dogs off, call your dogs off! Oh! Lordy! call em off quick! quick! en http://www.theguardian.com/music/2008/sep/14/popandrock30 Rock review: AC/DC, Rock 'n' Roll Train 2008-09-14 The Observer Craig McLean It can only be AC/DC: black black black! with the first single from their first new album in eight years, Black Ice. It's blues-metal heaviosity in exelcis. Not clever but, oh lordy, it's big. https://web.archive.org/web/20261018073410/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2008/sep/14/popandrock30 18 October 2026 Usage notes Often used in a combination like “Oh Lordy”, “Oh Lordy Lord” or even repeated “Oh Lordy, Lordy Lord”. Synonyms en dear Lord en Lord en Lordy loo en lawks Further reading exc